A Game of Fate
by TheAnimeFicWriter
Summary: The world is run through games and challenges. There are 8 rulers who no one has ever beaten. Will there be someone who can beat them?
1. Chapter 1

A Game of Fate

Chapter 1

The Beginning

 **Note:** Here's a new Love Live story and I have to say this one will probably the most different story I've ever written. The update schedule for this story may be inconsistent as I'm trying to create an elaborate universe for this story and it's been kind of slow for me. However, I hope you take the time to check this out and let me know how I did. Before you start, this story was loosely based on No Game No Life so don't be too hard on me that I stole some ideas. All credit goes to the author of that story. Anyway, please enjoy the story.

In ancient times, there was the goddess Muse who was given powers to lead the people of this world. They were unintelligent and uncivilized so she used her powers to create a society where people could learn and advance their causes. The people saw this as a blessing and took it without question. With everything Muse offered, the people started to become smarter and more independent. Unfortunately, time was not on Muse's side.

After about a generation or two, the people started to forget about Muse entirely. They stopped worshipping her and seeing that she was something special. This change in ways affected her in numerous ways. She maintained her powers through the people and their worship, but by them stopping their old ways, she became more and more worthless. She was running out of time. She could only think of one thing to do and she decided to go with it.

She entered the Earth Realm and searched for people that could take up her mysterious powers. It was a long and harsh journey as she wanted to make sure that the people she picked were good and could be trusted. Eventually, she found 8 people as worthy beings to inherit her powers. She told them her story and they all believed it. That's when she evenly distributed her power evenly amongst the 8 of them. However, it wasn't what they were expecting. Each person received power in very unique ways, ways that made them seem like gods to ordinary powers. Muse only asked that they use these powers to keep balance in the world. When they agreed to her terms, she disappeared from existence.

Now, her powers have been distributed amongst 8 girls who are seen as the goddesses of their world: Yazawa Nico, Hoshizora Rin, Koizumi Hanayo, Minami Kotori, Toujou Nozomi, Nishikino Maki, Ayase Eli, and Sonoda Umi. The story of Muse has also disappeared from existence, but these girls continue to astonish the world with their abilities, abilities that some people believe to be fake.

…

Society is fully functioning with barely any conflict. Thanks to the 8 goddesses, a creative way to decide disputes was decided. Any dispute would be decided by a game or challenge chosen by the accused party. When this happened, everyone in the area would serve as the judges. The winner of the game or challenge would be right and would have the support of the people watching which made cheating of any kind against the rules. There was no restriction to how many times one could challenge someone.

Sometimes, people would make it interesting and bet things of values and these games or challenges would be used to decide the winner. This was more of a low-class thing though. All of the high-class people used it more civilized ways, but there was one person in society who was determined to turn this world upside-down.

…

"Come on Honoka!"

"You can win!"

"Don't let this garbage win against you!"

Crowds of people were swarming this spectacle as Kousaka Honoka was being challenged by some random guy to game of strategy. Neither one of them put down anything of value so it was just friendly competition. However, Kousaka Honoka is the only person in the world who has never lost a challenge by anyone. This alone caused her to gain a lot of attention. People sometimes lined up to test their abilities against her. Unfortunately, it always turned out to be worthless.

"Do it!"

"You got this!"

"Woooo!"

With that finishing move, her perfect record remained while her challenger could only sit there in awe. At first, he thought he had her on the ropes, but she suddenly came from behind and took the game with such ease. She got up from her chair and left the area as silently as she could.

"Honoka-senpai!"

She turned around at the sound of the small voice.

"What's up?"

"I… I just wanted to say thank you for doing what you do."

"No problem," she said as she rubbed the top of the boy's head. "We got to stick together, right?"

"Yeah, you're right."

"Alright, well, I gotta go. Stay out of trouble, but if you ever get in any, just call my name and I promise to be there for you."

"Okay."

She walked off once again and managed to get away without any more interruptions. She headed to her favorite café where she was practically the celebrity there. She got nearly everything for free and everyone loved her being there. However, she tried not to make too much of a scene to avoid any unwanted attention. She grabbed her normal seat at the counter and ordered her normal drink.

"Hey Honoka, did you hear the news?"

"What news?"

"You didn't know? Someone challenged the 8 goddesses of Muse today and got completely destroyed."

"Ha! What an idiot. Everyone knows that you shouldn't mess with them. They keep us in check."

"What are you talking about? They don't do anything except sit on their thrones like queens."

"What are you talking, Tsubasa? They shaped this world into what it is now. Don't just trash on what they've done because you're jealous."

"Alright, fine."

At that moment, someone crashed the front door of the café which caught everyone's attention.

"Hey, that's the guy I was talking about just now," Tsubasa exclaimed as she pointed at the man on the floor.

"What guy?"

"The one who challenged who the goddesses. God, I swear. You can be quite the airhead sometimes, Honoka." She jumped over the counter and ran over the guy. She picked him off the ground and put him on a chair nearby. She then grabbed a wet towel and wiped his face. Eventually, he came to and saw multiple people standing around him. "Hey, you alright?"

"W-Where am I?"

"You're in a café in the middle of the Town of Commons. What happened?"

"I… I don't really remember. All I remember was challenging the 8 goddesses of Muse."

"Why would you do something as stupid as that," Honoka interjected with a stern voice.

"Well… I heard a rumor that if you managed to beat them, you would take over as the leader of the world. I couldn't pass up an opportunity like that."

At that moment, most of the people in café left and headed towards Mt. Muse. Meanwhile, Tsubasa and Honoka watched everyone leave. They couldn't believe how stupid these people were. There was a reason why the 8 goddesses were goddesses. They couldn't be beat at anything since they were endowed with special abilities that couldn't be explained.

"C-Can I get a drink?"

"Sure." Tsubasa headed back to the counter while Honoka walked towards him and knelt down in front of him.

"You know killing is illegal when it comes to these challenges, right?" She was staring right at him as he nervously nodded his head. "So why do you look like crap? There's no way that their challenge would be this hard."

He suddenly grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and pulled her close.

"You have no idea what they're capable of." He looked her dead in the eye while Honoka looked right back at him and could tell that he went through some crazy stuff.

"Get off of me." She smacked his hands away from her neck and headed towards the exit.

"Hey, where are you going?!"

"I'm going to go check out what's the big deal about these goddesses." She headed out the door and headed towards Mt. Muse. However, before she could talk her first step, she saw everyone from the café run back towards her.

"Run!"

"What the hell was that?!"

"I don't know! Just keep running!"

Honoka watched as all of these people passed by her in such frantic fashion. She was so confused. They literally just left a few minutes ago and yet, they came back as fast as if they saw some kind of monster. However, this didn't change her mind. She wanted to know what was going on here so she toughened up and walked towards the mountain.

When she made it to the bottom of the mountain, she saw a huge stairwell that went right up the mountain. On the top and the sides were shrines that served as the homes for the 8 goddesses. At that point, Honoka knew that it was too late to head back so she walked up the stairwell with the intentions of going straight for the top. On the way up, she came across some random person with a cloak covering their body. They were sitting near the middle of the walk up when Honoka spotted them.

"Hey, you okay?"

"I'm fine. What are you doing here?"

"I've come to talk to the goddesses of Muse."

"And where do you think you're going?"

"To the top… Where they're located."

"Haha, you crack me up. If you want to talk to them, you'll have to start at the bottom and make your way up. That's just how it goes."

"How do you know this? How can I trust what you say? I barely trust the people who came running back into town with pale faces."

"Just trust me. I'm the caretaker of the mountain so my word is the only one that you can trust now. Head back down the mountain and go into the first shrine on the left. You'll find your answers there." The strange person stood up and headed towards the top. Meanwhile, Honoka was so confused. None of this was making any sense, but then again, that was why she was here. She wanted to know what was going on. That's when she headed back down and into the first shrine she was told to go into.

When she arrived, she pushed the door wide open and saw a long hallway in front of her. At the end of the long hallway was someone sitting on a chair. That's when Honoka took a deep breath and headed towards them. As she got closer, she saw that it was a small girl with black hair and red eyes. Already, this seemed kind of scary. She stopped a few feet in front of the chair and looked right at her.

"Have you come to challenge me as well?"

"I came to ask you some questions."

"That's not how it works. If you want answers. You'll have to challenge me."

"No. Just one question is all I want to ask."

At that moment, the girl got up from her chair and headed into the back of the shrine.

"I'm sorry, but I don't have time for this nonsense." She continued to walk off until that same voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Alright, fine! I challenge you!"

The girl turned around with a huge smile on her face.

"I suddenly like you so much more now. Let's do this, shall we?"

End of Chapter 1


	2. Chapter 2

A Game of Fate

Chapter 2

Goddess Nico

"You are the challenger which allows me to choose how this dispute will be decided. Luckily for you, I already know what I will choose. Come with me." At that moment, the door just behind her chair opened up, revealing a long hallway. Honoka took another deep breath and followed her without question.

While following this strange girl, Honoka couldn't help but get a little psyched up. All of those people were probably running away from this place, but why? To Honoka, nothing seemed to scare her. It was just the atmosphere that was giving her some troubles. When they made it to the end of the hall, the door slid open and Honoka was introduced to a high-tech room.

"Whoa, what is this place?"

"This is my favorite place of all time. The game we'll be playing is a personal favorite. It's called Hunting in Plain Sight. Do you know how to play?"

"No."

"Good. I like explaining the rules." Out of nowhere, the girl created two identical clones and had them stand beside her. "This is how you play. You will be placed into a group of people like this looking like me. I will also be placed within this group of people. The point of the game is to find each other and tag them with this shocker. Don't worry, it won't cause any bodily harm. If you find someone who looks like me, this will happen." The girl put the shocker in her clone's stomach and caused it to disappear into a cloud of smoke. "But… if you get the right me, everyone else will disappear. Do you understand?"

"I mean… I guess so. But… How is this fair?"

"It's not supposed to be. You challenge me and I get to set the parameters. If you have a problem, you can always leave whenever you want," she said with an evil smirk.

"No… I just… Give me some time to think." At that moment, Honoka realized why all of those people were running away. This game was unfair on every level. She was the one who had the disadvantage. No matter how she looked at it, she had to do all of the work while this other girl got to sit back and relax. "So let me guess this straight. All I have to do is find the real you and I win."

"Yep. To make things fairer, you only need to find the real me once. I will have to find you three times. How about it? Are you ready?"

Honoka was liking the sound of this game a little bit more than before, but she did have this small thought in the back of her mind that was telling her that this game was rigged. She had her reputation to worry about so she was still iffy about risking it just to answer a few questions.

"What are we wagering?"

"You're wanting answers to your questions so if you win, I'll answer anything you ask. If I win, you will never step foot on this mountain ever again. Got it?" She leaned in and gave Honoka a really scary look. However, Honoka stood her ground and took another deep breath.

"Got it. Let's do this."

"Alright, I definitely like you now. Allow me to introduce myself once again. I am Yazawa Nico, one of the 8 descendants of the Goddess Muse. Let's have a good game." Nico tossed a shocker stick to Honoka as the game was starting to set.

At that moment, the room filled up with smoke as the two of them were randomly assigned somewhere inside that room. Honoka was starting to panic just a little bit because things were moving just a little too quickly for her. The smoke surrounding her lasted for about another minute until it finally subsided. When Honoka was able to see again, she saw a room full of the same-looking girl all around her. It appeared as though the game was on.

…

Honoka looked around cautiously and saw that a town was created around her somehow. Nico clones were everywhere which only made things a lot worse. She could barely wrap her head around what was happening to her. Unfortunately, she wasn't given a lot of time to think. Within a manner of seconds, the real Nico appeared behind her and gave her a shock to the back.

"That's one. You're already falling behind."

Once again, the place filled up with smoke. Honoka wanted to know what was going on, but there was no explanation for her questions. When the room dissipated with smoke, she saw that there was a new place with the same concept still going on. However, Honoka was ready this time… At least a little more than last time. She ran towards the shadows that the buildings provided and watched from a distance. The only bad thing was that no one looked out of the ordinary. That's when Honoka really started to question this game.

"How is this fair? I don't see any way I can win." She was about give up, but then she saw something unusual. One of the girls was looking around as if she was lost. This was the lead that Honoka was searching for. That girl was the only one sticking out of the crowd so she pulled out her shock stick and headed for her. "I got you now!" Honoka lunged at the girl and poked her right in the stomach.

Poof!

"What?!"

"That wasn't the right one, dummy." From behind, Nico jumped at her and got her in the back.

Honoka felt the rush of electricity run through her body as she was down to her last life. The room reset once more, but it seemed to give Honoka a little more time to think. She had to use this time effectively. Staying still like she did in the first round didn't prove to be effective at all. Relying on her gut like the second round didn't prove to be much help either. There weren't many options she had left. As her mind continued to get flustered with ideas, the room reset was finished and the final round was starting. Either she would win or Nico would… And that was not what Honoka wanted.

This time, the town was a lot more open which prevented any aerial attack like it seemed in the second round. Honoka walked into the middle of the huge group and slowly scanned the area. She wasn't looking for anything in particular since she knew she had to change her game plan. The thing that was different from the other rounds was that it seemed to go on longer than normal. That meant many things, but Honoka didn't want to think about it. She kept her mind as calm as it could be at the time and made sure that her immediate vicinity was clear.

It seemed like minutes went by until something finally happened. The real Nico finally spotted Honoka in the mass of clones. That's when she pulled out her shock stick and went for the closing attack. She ran as fast as she could towards her with the stick ready. As she neared, she started to laugh.

"I got you now." She lunged for Honoka, but when she reached full extension, Honoka wasn't there. "What?!"

"Surprises won't work forever." From below, Honoka was crouched right below Nico's body with her shock stick ready. She aimed straight up and nailed her right in the gut.

"Guh!" At that moment, all of the clones in the room disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Honoka had won. The buzzer sounded which meant the match was over. Nico's body hit the ground after being shocked for the first time ever, but she eventually made it back to her feet to confront Honoka about this surprising revelation. "How did you know I was behind you?"

"Well, the first two times were definitely a surprise, but the third round told me everything."

"How?"

"I was able to realize that your specialty was surprise attacks. That's why every time we encountered each other, you were behind me. I also took the bet that you weren't very good at fighting. Luckily for me, since I'm part of the common people, fighting is a necessity so I wasn't worried about that."

"Hm… Very interesting. You're the first person to ever discover those things about me. Very well… As promised, I will answer any question you have."

"Sweet…"

"With confidentiality that you will never tell anyone what you know about me."

"O-Okay."

"Alright then… Ask away."

Honoka took a breath of relief and began.

"On the news, they made it seem like a big deal that someone came to the mountain to challenge the Goddesses. Why is that?"

"The Goddesses have always been seen as the keepers of peace or at least, people of higher power in the world. The rumors that we have powers are true; I will tell you that. With this whole system of games or challenges, the odds would always be in our favor so people just decided to not try. However, when this started to become more like a sport, challenging us started to seem like a good idea. The only thing is that common people can't win. For you, I can say that you are not common. To win like you did, I'm quite interested in following your progress."

"Progress? What do you mean by that?"

"Here on the mountain, we received that there was only one person in the world who has never been beaten. I can only guess that that person is you."

At that moment, Honoka gulped incredibly loud which only made Nico laugh.

"Haha! Don't be so nervous. No one's hostile about this. Since we've been so isolated, the Goddesses would love a challenge."

"But I never said I wanted to challenge anyone else. You said you would answer any question that I had. I still have more questions."

"I'm afraid I've said too much. If you want more questions, I suggest continuing up the mountain to find the answers that you seek."

"But…"

"Begone!" At that moment, a huge cloud of smoke appeared, revealing an army Nico clones all around her. In that split second, the real Nico disappeared into the crowd of clones, preventing Honoka from finding out any more.

"Wait! That wasn't part of the deal! Answer me!"

"I answered the questions that were relevant to the situation. Now leave this place!"

"No! You need to answer everything!" Honoka waited for a few seconds, but realized that it was worthless. She turned around and saw that the door leading out of the shrine was already open. She slowly made her way there and exited the shrine in silence. When she made it outside, the caretaker was standing outside giving her a cute, little applause.

"Congratulations on beating your first Goddess. I didn't expect this at all."

"What is going on here? What aren't you telling me?"

"I don't understand what you're asking. Everything you could ever want to know is on this mountain. You just have to make it to the top if you want the full answer."

As angered as Honoka was, it was quickly starting to seem that challenging and beating the Goddesses was the only way to go. She asked the caretaker where to go next and Honoka immediately headed there without question. This was only because none of her questions would ever be answered unless she furthered herself up the mountain.

When she arrived at the next shrine, the door opened automatically and Honoka walked in with slightly more confidence than before. She walked through the dark room until she saw the throne in the back of the shrine. However, the throne had two chairs which was a little strange. She immediately stopped where she was and looked around. The Goddess wasn't in her chair.

"Hello? Goddess, are you here? I came to…"

"Challenge us? We know. I saw the whole thing."

"Us? We? Huh," Honoka questioned under her breath. "Uh… Yeah, I did. Shall we get this thing… Ah!" From both sides, two huge jaguars appeared out from the darkness. "Um… Am I intruding?!"

"Rin-chan, call them off. This girl is our guest."

"Oh right, ~nya!" The two cats backed down as the room lit up. This gave Honoka a chance to look around, but she still couldn't see anybody. After a few seconds, one girl jumped down from the ceiling and the other appeared out from behind the pillar.

"Welcome to the Sister Shrine. Have you come to challenge us?"

End of Chapter 2


	3. Chapter 3

A Game of Fate

Chapter 3

Goddesses Hanayo and Rin

"Y-Yes, I did."

"Rin-chan, oh my gosh, it's been so long since someone has entered our shrine in hopes of a challenge. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Sort of. It depends on if this girl is capable of giving us a challenge. So… We take it that you defeated Nico-chan."

Honoka nodded her head.

"Interesting."

"Wow, Rin-chan, did you hear that? This girl actually beat our beloved Nico-chan. I love Nico-chan. She's so cute.

"Kayo-chin, I think we should focus on this girl instead of falling onto other tangents."

"Right. I'm sorry." She cleared her throat and addressed the issue. "May we ask your name?"

"My name is Kousaka Honoka and I'm here to challenge you."

"Wonderful. I am Koizumi Hanayo, one of the 8 descendants of the Goddess Muse."

"I'm Hoshizora Rin."

"Wait… Why do I get the feeling that this is a package deal?"

"Because it is."

"How is that fair?"

"We are the sister shrine. We are inseparable so if you have problem with that, you are more than free to leave this place."

"Yeah." Rin's voice was sharp which made the cats next to Honoka get a little on-edge."

"Alright, if you're ready, you may follow us and we'll show you to the arena."

Honoka was a little slow at following them since they seemed a little weird. At least the previous girl was a lot more straight-forward with her. These two seemed like they were hiding something. If they weren't hiding anything then they were just very weird in general. The walk didn't last that long. The process was almost identical to the previous girl. Honoka was introduced to a giant room, but this time, it already a preset look to it.

"Welcome to the arena. Today, we will be playing the Storm the Tower. Do you know how to play?"

"Nope."

"Alright. We'll explain the rules."

"The rules are simple," Rin interjected. "Kayo-chin and I are up there and you start at the far edge of the jungle. Your goal is to make to us and capture the flag. We are trying to stop you at all costs. You get it, right? That's what I thought."

"Rin-chan, what's the matter with you today? You seem a little aggressive."

Rin didn't answer. She just crossed her arms and headed up to the top of the tower.

"I apologize for her behavior. She's usually very kind. Is there anything you don't understand?"

"Um, I think I get it. I just have to make it up there and capture the flag. Exactly. Our only job is to defend it. Once you obtain the flag, the game is over."

"So are we betting anything?"

"Only if you want," she said with a smile.

"Well, I would like to ask you two some questions. No matter what I ask, can you answer them for me?"

"Of course. That will be your half of the bet. If we win… Hm, if we win… You will head down the mountain and tell everyone that you have lost."

Honoka's eyes shot wide open.

"That's right. We know who you are: The only person in the world who has never experienced a loss. With the track record you have, you should have lost by now, but apparently, you haven't. I think it would be a good reality check for you. No one can stay perfect forever. Do we agree?"

"I… I agree."

"Then let's begin!" Hanayo jumped up to the top of the tower while Honoka was transported to the far edge of the jungle. The game was starting.

…

Honoka started off strong. She gained as much ground as she could without getting in sight of the two girls. She remained behind trees and tried to make the least amount of noise as possible. In the beginning, she didn't think this would be that difficult, but that was only because the two girls hadn't started their defense.

After about a minute or so, Rin and Hanayo started their defense. Two cougars appeared next to Rin and she commanded them to track down Honoka. In the blink of an eye, they jumped off the tower and pursued Honoka at incredible speed. Unfortunately, Honoka was unaware of this so she continued to move closer towards the tower.

When she got within eyesight of the tower, she hid behind another tree and took a deep breath. She was deciding how she wanted to go about attacking the tower. To her eyes, they didn't seem like they were doing anything so a full frontal assault was a possibility. She continued to run through all of her options until something caught her attention. She heard rough breathing coming from above her. When she looked up, she saw a huge cougar towering right over her.

"They're animals in here?!"

The cougar pounced down towards her, but Honoka rolled out of the way before it could get her. Immediately coming out of her roll, she saw another cougar right next to her. She couldn't escape since the momentum of her roll kept her going in one direction. The cougar swiped at her and managed to cut her arm.

"Aahhh!"

"I got her."

"Rin-chan, remember not to kill her. That isn't the point of this game."

"Ugh, I know. Stop treating me like a child, Kayo-chin."

Honoka finished her roll and covered her arm as quickly as she could. Meanwhile, the cougars ceased their pursuit and returned to the tower.

This injury forced Honoka to retreat for the time being. She looked for leaves and vines to help cover the wound. The last thing she could worry about was a little cut on her arm so she gathered the necessary resources she needed and started to plan out another strategy. She was still unaware that those cougars were Rin's so she was still at a disadvantage.

Back at the tower, Rin summoned two cheetahs and had them stand guard at the base of the tower. Cheetahs were none for their incredible speed and prowess so they served as the best line of defense in case if Honoka tried a surprise attack.

"Kayo-chin, are you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay. Why would you think I wasn't?"

"Well, you're glasses are still on."

"I'm just testing this girl's ability, and right now, things are starting to seem interesting."

"What do you mean?"

"She's not giving up. I can tell that much. She's probably planning something else. I suggest that we stay on our guard and make sure that nothing gets passed us."

"But Kayo-chin, with your eyes, we won't need to worry about that."

"I know. I just don't want to use them excessively."

…

Once Honoka was finished with her little healing session, she managed to come up with a plan. Attacking them from the front wasn't the best idea so she decided to go up the side and test her luck. Quickly and silently was the way she went, but when she got close to the tower, she something blocking her way. The two cheetahs were standing guard as if it was their territory.

"What the heck are cheetahs doing in a jungle? I'm that stupid." Honoka immediately rescinded her original plan. With those beasts in her way, there was no way she could attack. She turned around and looked for something to serve as a decoy. That's when she saw a small pile of rocks. She picked them up and retreated some more.

When she gained some distance between her and the beasts, she threw one rock in one direction and one in the other causing the cheetahs to leave their current position. Now, this gave Honoka a chance to approach the tower with less heat. At first, she was slow just to make sure nothing else would sneak up around her. Once the area was clear, she charged at full speeds.

"Rin-chan!"

"What?!"

"Your cats are leaving their positions."

"What?!" She turned her head and saw them heading to the corners of the jungle. "What the heck are they doing?"

"I don't like this." Hanayo removed her glasses and looked into the jungle to see Honoka blazing towards them. "Rin-chan, summon more cats. She's coming!"

"No she isn't. I can't…"

At that moment, Honoka burst out of the trees in midair with every intent of getting passed them. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to work. Rin suddenly summoned a huge lion out of nowhere and it tackled Honoka out of the way. The good thing was that Honoka managed to remain on the tower. The bad thing was that she now had three enemies: Rin, Hanayo, and the lion. Rin and the lion were on one side of her guarding the flag while Hanayo was on the other side watching everything.

"How the hell did that happen?"

"You didn't know. I can summon cats to my will. Kayo-chin, over there, as vision that can see through practically anything. You don't stand a chance against us."

"Oh yeah?"

"Rin-chan, she's going right!"

Before Honoka could even take a step, the lion stepped right in front of her and prevented that path from being used.

"How the…" Honoka looked back and saw Hanayo actively watching her movements. That's when she realized that Rin's description wasn't entirely accurate. The only thing that Honoka could think of was that her vision allowed her to predict movements and other things like that. "Crap."

"We got you now."

Honoka was running out of time. She had to do something or else Hanayo would be able to analyze everything. Without wasting any more time, Honoka ran to the left and Hanayo was there to call it out. This time, the lion leapt right at her. However, Honoka was ready for this as well. She slid on her knees and avoided the lion's attack.

"What? How did she… Ugh!" Hanayo suddenly got a pain in her eyes which caused her to close them and turn away."

"Kayo-chin, watch out!" Rin's lion continued its attack, but since it missed Honoka, it was heading for Hanayo instead. "Vanish!" Rin swiped her arm and made the lion disappear, but that wasn't the only thing to worry about. Honoka was there and swiped her legs at Rin's causing her to fall to the ground.

"That flag is mine!" With Rin out of the way, Honoka only had to reach for the flag. She used every bit of strength she could to reach out for the flag while the other two were in complete shock as to what they were witnessing.

The buzzer went off as Honoka tackled the flag to the ground. She had won yet again. Rin and Hanayo couldn't believe that this girl bested her at their own game. Honoka slowly rose to her feet and turned around, holding the flag in her hands.

"I won. Answer my questions."

"You got lucky. If Kayo-chin's eyes weren't bothering her, we would have easily won…"

Hanayo stuck her arm out in front of Rin and then put her glasses on.

"You're smart. It's been so long since I've seen someone do what you did. You used me as leverage since the lion missed its attack on you. If it was solely one-on-one, that would have never happened."

"So are you going to answer my questions?"

"Sure."

"Good. Why are you people special?"

"You didn't know. The descendants of the Goddess Muse acquire power to keep the world in balance. It's as simple as that."

"I can't believe we lost to an airhead like her."

"Rin-chan."

"Anyway, what are the other Goddesses like?"

There was suddenly a long pause. Hanayo and Rin looked at each other with confused looks on their faces.

"What? You said you would answer my questions."

"Sorry, but not that question. We are sorry, but you have to leave now."

"No. I have more questions."

"Rin-chan."

Rin suddenly summoned two giant tigers and had them press Honoka towards the exit. Even though Honoka had more questions to ask, her current situation kind of prevented her from getting anywhere else with these two girls. She quickly exited the shrine and looked up the mountain. There were five more shrines to go to, but an optimistic thought came to her mind. These challenges weren't too hard so her road ahead may not be as hard as she first thought.

"You may have beaten three Goddesses already, but I wouldn't get too comfortable. There's still a lot left in your way."

"Why do you always show up in these situations?"

"I told you. I'm the caretaker. I'm supposed to make sure nothing bad happens out here."

"Yes, you've already told me that."

"Anyway, do you have the courage to continue your journey to the top?"

"Of course I do."

The caretaker was about to leave, but when Honoka answered that question, they stopped in their tracks and headed towards her. They moved in closer to Honoka and stared her in the eyes.

"I wouldn't be so sure. The powers of the Goddesses are not something to look down on. If I were you, I would make sure my mind is ready to face the toughest challenges I could ever think of." After those words, the caretaker left in mysterious fashion. That's when Honoka managed to see who that person was.

"She's a girl?"

End of Chapter 3


	4. Chapter 4

A Game of Fate

Chapter 4

Goddess Nozomi

Although figuring out a little more about that caretaker was strange, Honoka had to move on. These goddesses were getting really stubborn with answering her questions so the quicker she got through this, the less she had to wait to find out what was going on. She headed to the next shrine and entered through its door. It was the same as the others, but this one had an aura that set it differently from the previous ones. She walked through the building until she made it to the throne where the goddess was waiting for her.

"Hello."

"Hello there. By you coming here only means that you've managed to beat the others before me."

"That's correct."

"Wow, this is quite the momentous occasion. No one has ever made it this far. I'm so happy."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"You didn't know? In order to see all of the goddesses, you have to beat each one first in a specific order. It's kind of common sense at this point."

"Well, I didn't know that."

"That's good because I've been longing for a challenger to come my way. If you would follow me, we can get this thing started." The girl stood up from her chair and did the usual procedure by having Honoka follow her into the back.

Once they were there, Honoka immediately felt sick to the stomach. There was something about this place that made her feel so uncomfortable. The room was very dark as if it's never been used before.

"So, is this the place?" Honoka's voice was a little shaky.

"This is it. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Toujou Nozomi and I am one of the descendants of the Goddess Muse."

"I'm Kousaka Honoka."

"Honoka? That's a very cute name. Anyway, you are challenging me in order to pass through the mountain, yes?" She looked at Honoka and saw her nodding her head. "Here's the game. We will stand on opposite sides of the room. All you have to do is cross the line in the middle of the room. I, on the other hand, am trying to stop you. You get it?"

"That's it?"

"Yep, nothing hard about it, right?"

"I guess. It's just that it seems a little weird to have such an easy challenge this far up the mountain."

"Oh, I wouldn't underestimate people that you don't even know. There are many amazing people in this world, and you haven't even seen the top three goddesses." Nozomi gave Honoka a menacing look that immediately caused Honoka to regret saying that. "Are you ready to begin?"

"S-Sure."

"Alright, let's take our positions." The two of them went to the opposite sides of the room and prepared for the game. "If you ever decide to forfeit, just call it out and I will stop the game. But you'll end up forfeiting no matter what," she said under breath.

At that moment, Honoka was confused. Why would she even think about calling quits? She's made it this far so she couldn't just give up like some kind of loser. Her record was at stake so she wasn't going to lose this or any other game she played. She took a deep breath and yelled out that she was ready. Without wasting time, Nozomi called the game and things immediately kicked off.

Honoka charged towards the line as quickly as she could while Nozomi was just standing at her original spot. Honoka couldn't help but think that something was up, but she didn't have time to think about it. She was getting closer to the line which the closer she would be to figuring out what was going on around her.

"Game over!" Honoka leapt towards the line at full force.

"Hehe, you're so quaint," Nozomi said under her breath. Then, she suddenly raised her hand and out came a powerful gust of wind that knocked Honoka's body back to her original starting point. Once she regained herself, she looked up in confusion.

"What the heck was that?" She looked back at Nozomi, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"I told you not to underestimate your opponent. There are many things you don't know about this world."

"Shut up!" Honoka returned to her feet, charged up yet again, and ran towards the line with everything she had. However, it wasn't going to be any easier from this point on.

Nozomi raised her hand again and a stone wall suddenly appeared in front of Honoka's path. She nearly rammed her entire face into it at the speed she was going. Once she figured out that her forward path was blocked, she turned right and headed that way just to make a sharp turn back towards the line. That's when another strange thing happened. When she took a step closer to the line, it felt as if she was sinking into the ground. That's when she looked down to see the ground swallowing up her leg. She tried pulling out as hard as she could, but it seemed impossible.

"Come on. The line is right there. Pull it together Honoka!"

"I'm sorry, but there's no way that you're winning this." At that moment, Nozomi shot that same blast of wind at her and knocked her back to the starting position. However, she stayed on the offensive this time.

When Honoka tried to run towards the line again, she immediately felt an invisible wall around her. She tried punching it to see if it would break, but nothing happened. She looked around frantically, but nothing was able to help her out. That's when something else happened. Honoka immediately started to feel light-headed. She was unaware of it, but the air inside that small area was disappearing before her. She started to cough and eventually fall to her knees in pain. She could barely see as air was no longer available to her.

"Was this what she meant by forfeit?" Her mind and body continued to give out until she thought of one last opportunity. She threw up her arms and started to wave it as frantically as she could. Only a few seconds after that, air returned and Honoka was able to recover from that near-death experience.

"That is a loss, sweety. It was quite entertaining though." Nozomi turned around and headed back into the shrine.

"Wait!" Honoka's voice managed to return and allowed her to scream at the girl. "What does this mean?" None of this was making sense… This girl, this game, what just happened; she couldn't even explain it to herself in her head.

"What does what mean?"

"I forfeited. What happens now?"

"Hm, well, I'm not like the other girls so I will make you a deal. I will give you a second chance since I could tell there is something different about you, and plus, I really like you. However, when you leave this building, you will forget everything you've seen or remembered about this incursion between us. When you're ready, you may come back and challenge me again. I expect better results next time. Bye bye." She exited through the door and left Honoka to leave on her own.

As she made her way to the exit, she was baffled by what she just went through. Not only did she lose, but for the first time in her life, she felt as though there was no way she could beat this girl. There didn't seem to be anything she could do against her. It seemed as if she had magic or something. Everything that happened didn't seem real or possible. All of these thoughts were running through her head until she made it outside of the shrine. That's when Honoka's memory of this incursion suddenly vanished from existence.

"Wait, what just happened? Where am I?" Honoka looked around like a little kid who was lost in a crowd of people. It wasn't until she saw that she was standing at a shrine that she realized where she was. "Oh yeah, I'm supposed to challenge the next goddess." Honoka was about to walk into the shrine again, but a voice stopped her before she could.

"I wouldn't do that if I were. You need some time to rest. Come with me."

Honoka turned around and saw who it was who was talking to her. It wasn't the caretaker this time, surprisingly. It was some other girl. Honoka watched the strange girl head into one of the shrines and immediately followed behind her.

"Who are you? Why are you in here? I thought only goddesses and challengers were allowed in shrines."

"You're such a silly girl. I am a goddess."

End of Chapter 4


	5. Chapter 5

A Game of Fate

Chapter 5

Goddess Kotori

 **Note:** Well, it's been another great year with you guys and I hope that we can have many more like this. Thank you so much for your support and I hope you enjoy the update.

"You're a goddess? What? Then why are you inviting me into your shrine?"

"You are still very funny. Just come on in and I'll tell you as much as I know." The girl walked through the front doors and gestured Honoka to follow her.

When she walked inside, she saw a beautiful shrine. Natural light was seen from all sides of the room. However, the strange thing was that there was a whole bunch of birds flying around the place. None of them seemed hostile, but after a while, some of them landed on her shoulder and finger. She smiled and chuckled to herself whenever they did that. On the other hand, Honoka was so confused… More than normal. All this time, she had the preconceived idea that goddess were people unlike everyone else and yet, this one in particular was throwing that concept out of the water.

"So who are you," Honoka with a great amount of suspicion.

"My name is Minami Kotori and I'm a descendant of the goddess Muse. It's an honor to meet you."

"I'm Kousaka Honoka and I want to know why you're doing this."

"Let's take a seat and I'll get to your questions."

When Honoka heard her say the word "questions," her face lit as she ran to the little table in the middle of the shrine. Kotori sat down a few seconds after Honoka which caused the birds circling the area to finally calm down. One of the birds brought a pot of tea with two cups and the two of them got down to business.

"So, what would you like to know?"

At first, Honoka was so anxious to ask her about the things she's been wondering, but then she immediately stopped herself. She realized that this could be the same thing as her previous encounters. They'll say they'll answer anything, but eventually say enough. Honoka took a deep breath and looked at the girl in all seriousness.

"Will you answer all of my questions?"

"As many of them as I can."

"Are you sure?"

Kotori took a sip of tea and looked at Honoka with that same sense of seriousness.

"Does it look like I'm trying to hide anything? You've made it this far and that in itself is an accomplishment worth acknowledging. Go ahead and ask away."

Honoka's suspicions were subsiding slowly, but she couldn't help but wonder why this girl was the way she was.

"First question: Why are you behaving so friendly towards me? None of the other goddess were like this in the slightest of ways."

"Oh, that's a great question. As you may already know, the goddesses were bestowed special powers to watch over the world. Well, that's not precisely true. I was not given powers… Well, at least not powers that could actually make a difference. Compassion is a feeling and I can sense compassion in everyone. I've also been given the genuine heart. I can't lie, steal, or do anything of that nature. That's why I'm like this. Does that help?"

"I think so. Next question: Why is this mountain the way it is?"

"Another great question. I really like you. A long time ago, one person tried to take our powers for themselves, but the greatest amongst the descendants was able to stop them. Before her life ended, Muse was able to do one more thing. She created this mountain and placed a seal on it, stating that only worthy people can ascend the mountain and possibly claim its glory."

"Glory? What glory?"

"It is possible to acquire the powers of Muse."

"But I thought only her descendants could acquire her power."

"That's the interesting thing about it. One by one, you have to beat the goddesses in their challenges, but it's not guaranteed that ultimate victory will be achieved." Kotori looked at Honoka and could see the puzzled look on her face. "I know this is seeming unreal, but it's completely the truth. I told you that I can't lie so you must believe me."

"Yeah, I get that, but I'm wondering why you're being so nice to me."

"I have the genuine heart. How can I not be?"

"Surely though, you've spoken to other people who have tried." Honoka looked at her and saw her shaking her head.

"Nope. You are my first encounter. Because of who I am and what I can do, the seal prevents me from seeing any outsider unless they make it as far as Toujou-sama. When I saw someone walking up this far, I knew they had to special and that's why I decided to invite you here. It's been so long since I've had company so this is really refreshing."

"What? You never invite the other goddesses."

"No. They are all in their own world little world, especially the higher up ones."

Honoka's face suddenly lit up.

"Can you tell me about the ones above this place?" She looked at Kotori and could see a change in mood on her face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, but that's not something I can do."

"Why not?"

"It's goes against the rules set by all of us. We vowed never to express the abilities of the ones who are above us in skill. That's what makes this place special. Once someone reached the top, everything can change within an instant."

"So… Not above you, but… You can tell me about Nozomi, right? I'm not quite sure what she can do, but I know she seems really strong. How is she this low on the mountain?"

"Oh, Toujou-sama is an interesting one. She is actually the only one of us who cannot be beaten through use of any of our skills."

Honoka immediately felt like a knife was stabbed through her chest.

"Then how can anyone even pass her?"

"Her abilities are special. She harnesses the power of magic which pretty much allows her to do anything she wants."

"How is that fair?"

"But she does have one weakness."

"How is that possible?"

"How is that not possible? With powers like hers, she should be at the top of the mountain, but we higher ups managed to figure out what it is."

"Could you tell me?"

…

Honoka slammed the doors and looked down the hallway to see Nozomi sitting on her throne. Honoka took a deep breath and walked to the throne where she was waiting for her.

"I'm so glad to see that you came back. Are you ready this time?"

Honoka nodded her head. Nozomi got off of her chair and headed to the arena where Honoka followed behind her. When they got there, Nozomi explained the rules once more and after that, the two of them got into position. That's when Honoka took another deep breath and tried to focus. She was only thinking about what Kotori told her. A few more seconds went by when the game finally started.

This time, Nozomi changed up her tactics. She created about a dozen of arrows above her and sent them flying towards Honoka. Honoka did her best to dodge them and make her way towards the line in the middle of the room. Once she cleared all of the arrows, another obstacle came around. Plumes of fire shot up from underneath her feet which caused her to constantly move around. She tried to keep an unpredictable pattern since Nozomi was doing all of this based on her movements. After a while, the plumes of fire stopped. That's when Honoka looked up towards Nozomi and saw her raising her hand. Honoka's eyes widened. This was what Kotori was talking about which meant that she had to use her finishing move. Honoka grabbed the bottom of her shirt and threw it above her head, exposing her breasts in open view of Nozomi.

Honoka managed to keep her eyes on Nozomi and saw something strange happen. Nozomi's hands lowered back down to her side and her jaw suddenly dropped to the floor. Her body started to act on itself as she slowly walked towards Honoka who still had her shirt raised. When she got closer to Honoka, Nozomi's hands raised in similar motions that looked as though she was about to fondle Honoka's breasts.

"This is it," she said under her breath.

She ran towards Nozomi, grabbed the back of her head and pulled it into her chest. She kept Nozomi's head there for a few seconds before letting her go. When she did, Nozomi's nose were letting out a nosebleed of unreasonable proportion. That's when Honoka lowered her shirt and kicked Nozomi's legs out from under her. Once her body hit the ground, Honoka ran to the line and dove over it to guarantee her victory.

It was over. Honoka had won once again. She looked back at Nozomi who was still a little giddy from what just happened. She walked over to her and picked her off the ground. She gently slapped her face and Nozomi managed to come back to reality.

"Oh. Haha, who would have known that you found my weakness? I'm quite impressed. You are my first challenger and I lost. I guess I need to work on my skills even more. Anyway, you are free to move along. Thank you… For allowing me access to your…"

Honoka couldn't stick around any longer. This girl was getting stranger by the second so she ran out of the shrine to avoid any more unnecessary conversation. Once she regained herself, she looked up to see

Kotori waving at her from her shrine.

"Good job and good luck!"

"Thank you so much for your help!"

"You're on your own from now on. I hope to see you at the top in no time." At that moment, the caretaker appeared behind her and whispered something in her ear.

"You are definitely going to need luck from here on out. I'm anxious to meet you at the top of this mountain."

End of Chapter 5


	6. Chapter 6

A Game of Fate

Chapter 6

The Top Three

"What did you say?" Honoka turned around as soon as she said those words, but the caretaker disappeared into thin air. "What the heck was that? What did she mean by that? Gosh, I'm so confused." Honoka smacked her hands against her head and closed her eyes. "Alright, let's just calm down. All that matters is that I managed to make it passed that goddess." Honoka was about to take a step forward when one last thing came to her mind. "Wait, my record has been ruined. Ugh, this sucks!"

She didn't have a lot of time to think it over. As she thought about it, her eyes wandered towards the top of the mountain where there were two girls standing in the middle of the staircase. This sight immediately made her silence her mind and walk towards them. As she neared the two of them, a chill was sent down her spine. It was another eerie feeling, but only this one felt stranger and scarier.

"H-Hello."

"Mmm. This is quite interesting, don't you think?"

"Yes. I don't think I've ever seen anyone up here aside from us. I think this calls for a special occasion."

"Um, excuse me, but… Are you two goddesses?"

The two of them gave Honoka a look of humor and then laughed.

"Hahaha, this girl is too much. Are we goddesses? Is that even a question at this point?"

"What is your name?"

"Kousaka Honoka, and I have come here to challenge the goddesses."

"I already knew that. Why else would you be up here if not for that reason?"

Honoka fear from before immediately turned to disgust. The way these two girls were talking to her was so condescending. It was almost a pain to stand there and listen to them. However, she was already this far. She couldn't just go back now. The end was near so she was going to go all of the way without any more failure.

"Umi-chan, there's no need for that attitude. We're supposed to welcome our guest with open arms. After all, she is our very first guest to ever make it this far. We were about to have some tea together. I ask that you join us. Come along Umi-chan." The girl turned around and headed to the nearby shrine. Honoka waited a few seconds before following.

Once she made it inside of the shrine, she could tell that things were completely different. There was a kotatsu in the middle of the large room. The two girls took their seat and started to pour the tea. That only lasted a few seconds before they looked at Honoka.

"Are you going to join us?"

"Uh… Yeah, I'll join you guys." Honoka quickly walked to the kotatsu and sat down silently. All she could do was look around with confusion. These girls were totally different from the other ones in that they seemed nice and threatening at the same time. It was the weirdest combination.

"So, what brings you here today, aside from the obvious?"

Honoka was about to open her mouth, but the other girl stuck her foot before she could say anything.

"This girl is interested in finding out the truth of Muse and her special descendants."

"Come on Umi-chan, don't be so rude. How about we start out with some introductions? I am Ayase Eli and I am one of the descendants of the Goddess Muse. It's an honor to meet you." She waited a few seconds and looked at the other girl, but she could tell that she wasn't budging so she bumped her with her elbow which forced a response out of her.

"Ow!"

"Introduce yourself."

"Alright, jeez. I told you not to hit me like that. Ugh! I am Sonoda Umi and I am one of the descendants of the Goddess Muse."

"Um, if you don't mind me asking… Why are you two together?"

"What do you mean?"

"Pretty much all of the goddesses were secluded to just their shrine. Now, I'm seeing two different people conversing as if this was their normal lives."

"Well, it kind of is. Up here, we don't get to do a lot of things so talking with each other is the best thing we can do."

"So no one else has made it this far?"

"Nope. We goddesses all have special talents and the ones below us manage to keep the people where they belong. To see someone make up this far is quite the spectacle. You must have talents yourself."

"Uh, not really."

"Of course she doesn't. There is no one more special than us goddesses."

"Oh, Umi-chan, you're being so childish. I apologize for her behavior. She doesn't normally act like this. I guess she doesn't like strangers."

"No, I like strangers. It's just that I see through this girl. She's guided by blind ambition. It should be obvious, even to you."

"Even if that's true, let's not talk bad about this girl. We should be praising her for making it this far."

"Whatever."

"Wow, you are such a buzz kill today. Anyway, let's keep on talking. Is there anything on your mind that we can answer?"

"Yeah, there is. I know a little bit about the story of Muse and she created 8 descendants. I've only met seven of you. Where is the eighth goddess?" Honoka looked at the two of them and the two of them were looking at each other. She didn't realize that she had asked an interesting question that they were a little on-edge about.

"Well, that's something I can't really explain. Umi-chan doesn't even know about that."

"That's true. My knowledge stops there. I know nothing about the eighth goddess except that she has incredible powers way beyond any of us. If you think you can beat her, you've got it all wrong. Eli-chan and I have been keeping the balance from afar while the other goddesses just live their lives. All I can say to you know is that you are way in over your head."

"I will have to agree with Umi-chan on this. None of us have ever seen or heard from this girl. Her life is pretty much a mystery to all of us."

"You know, I can't figure out you two at all."

"What do you mean?"

"When I got up here, I felt a chill go down my spine as a sense of fear filled the air. Now that I'm talking with you now, it's as if we're friends."

"Well, Umi-chan and I do our best to make sure that we come off as friendly, but in reality, we're only buttering you up."

"Huh? How does that work?"

"There's a reason why the two of us stand before the top goddess. Our abilities are unlike anything you've ever seen."

"But I went against Nozomi and managed to beat her."

"Haha, don't even make me laugh. That girl is weak. Since you've made it this far, you know about her weakness. It's completely stupid. There's a reason she's down there. She's strong, but she's not smart."

"Well, what about the twin goddesses?"

"Haha, you have a straight shot to my funny bone, don't you? Those two are weak as well. It's the fact that they work as a team that makes them weak. Put one in a corner and you've guaranteed yourself the victory. Try talking about another one of those low life goddesses and I'll give the perfect reason as to why Eli-chan and I are up here."

"I-I'm sorry." Honoka finally realized that she was overstepping her boundaries. This one goddess was finally revealing her true colors while the other one was staying on the sideline.

"You will be sorry. How about we quit with the formalities and get this show on the road?"

"A-Alright, name the game."

"Haha, that's so cute. You think you're going against me."

"Am I not?"

"Of course not. You have to beat the goddesses from bottom to top and I am the second goddess. Eli-chan will be the one you challenge."

At that moment, Honoka stood up and backed up a bit. At the same time, Eli stood up and had a smile on her face.

"Did you overlook me? That's kind of rude, don't you think?" She cracked her knuckles and continued to walk closer to Honoka. "I am the third goddess and you will be challenging me. Umi-chan, if you would be so kind as to clear the kotatsu, I would really appreciate it."

"Of course."

Umi quickly cleaned up the room and made her way to the top floor of the shrine. Once she was off the first floor, the room suddenly lit up with holograms all over the place. All Honoka could do was watch the spectacle happening around her.

"I hope you're ready because I've been raring to go ever since I saw you walk out of Nozomi-chan's shrine. I would suggest you take these."

Honoka looked down and saw Eli handing her a small box. She took the box and opened it up to see four small syringes inside of the box.

"What are these?"

"These will help you. You'll figure out what they do when the time comes. Now, I will explain the rules of the game."

"Okay."

"As you may already know, we like to keep the games simple. All you need to do is knock me to the ground. You may use any tactic you wish. You may use up as much time as you see fit, but once the syringes run out and you're unable to continue, you lose. My condition is simple. You may never set foot on this mountain ever again. Is that understood?"

"I think so. Then if I win, you will answer my questions."

"Sorry, but that won't happen. If you win, by some stroke of luck, you will have to challenge Umi-chan and then the top goddess. There will be no break for you after this. That's just the way it works. If you don't accept, you can head down the mountain right now and never ever come back again."

"Fine. I accept."

"Alright then."

"Good luck Eli-chan. I hope you're not too rusty."

"Don't worry about that. I've been waiting so long to fight someone. Let us begin."

End of Chapter 6


	7. Chapter 7

A Game of Fate

Chapter 7

Goddess Eli

"Let's begin." At that moment, an alarm blared through the shrine as an artificial city erupted out of nowhere. "Remember, the rules are simple: Knock me to the ground before you lose the will to fight. I hope you're ready because we are starting now." By the time her voice vanished, she disappeared from sight as well. Honoka looked around, but couldn't see her and knew that it was best to take a defensive stand against her.

"I can't be rash this time. I already did that once with Nozomi." She grabbed the syringes out of the box and put them in her pocket. After that, she found a good vantage point and scanned the area as best as she could.

The artificial city wasn't that big, but it offered a lot of blind spots that Eli was probably using to her advantage as well. This was new ground for Honoka so she had to take it calm and collectively. She quickly moved from blind spot to blind spot, erasing her existence to the best of her ability. However, the longer she tried to find Eli, the more it seemed that like girl wasn't even participating in this game.

The game continued for a couple of minutes, but there were no encounters whatsoever. Umi was watching the whole thing when a chill was sent down her spine. She was finally about to witness something happen which only made her concentrate on the game even more.

By now, Honoka made a full sweep of the city, but couldn't find Eli at all. When she returned to her original starting spot, she took a little breather to collect herself. She thought about what this game meant to see if it had any deeper meaning. All she had to do was knock her to the ground. It seemed simple enough, but there was obviously something else to it. She made it to the top three goddesses so it couldn't be this easy without a consequence.

"This isn't a good time to be resting." Out of nowhere, a voice appeared from behind her. Honoka quickly turned around and saw that it was Eli.

"What the…" She tried jumping away from the girl, but it was no use.

At that moment, Eli clenched her fist and landed a huge punch to Honoka's gut. This punch sent an incredible feeling on pain throughout her entire body. However, that wasn't the only thing it did. The brute force of the punch sent Honoka's body sailing away at high speeds. She crashed through walls and other things until the momentum of her body finally stopped. She hit a wall and fell to the ground, coughing up blood.

"Oh my God, a-are you serious? W-What kind of punch was that?" Honoka tried standing up, but it was impossible. That punch left such a scar in her body that she could barely even blink her eyes. "Guh!" She tried once more, but collapsed once more. That's when she reached into her pocket and pulled out a syringe.

 _These will help you._

Honoka suddenly remembered the words that Eli spoke to her before the game started. She didn't give her any information about them, but now she was starting to realize the importance of having these with her. She then popped the cap off and jammed it into her stomach.

"Guh!" The sting of the needle caused her body to tense up, but could feel the immediate effects of the mysterious fluid. Her body was instantly healed and she couldn't even comprehend how it was possible.

"Those are nice, huh?" That voice appeared again which only made Honoka grow even more defensive than before.

She quickly scanned the area and saw Eli jump down from one of the buildings. She had a smile on her face as she slowly walked towards her.

"I told you those would come in handy when the game starts."

"What the hell are you?"

"Haha, that's a rude question."

Honoka slowly rose to her feet while keeping her eyes firmly on Eli.

"I would suggest being careful from here on out. That was just a teaser to what I can truly do and now, you only have three lives left."

"Lives?"

"What you experienced was a punch that was about 50% of my strength. Make me punch with all of my might and you won't be able to recover." Eli suddenly lowered her body and charged Honoka at full speed. She threw her palm at Honoka, but Honoka somehow managed to dodge it.

Even though it was just a palm attack, it felt like something completely different. The two of them stood in place looking at each other with complete amazement. Eli looked over to where Honoka was standing and Honoka was looking at Eli with sweat running down the side of her face.

"Nice dodge." She suddenly clenched her fist and an abnormal gust of wind sent Honoka sliding away.

"What?"

"Aahhhh!" Eli was already in the air with a punch charged up.

"Oh God…" Honoka rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the punch. However, when she looked behind her, she saw that the punch caused the ground to crumble. Immediately after that, she saw a large rock fly towards her. Thankfully, it wasn't moving fast so she grabbed it out of the air.

"That wasn't smart." Eli's fist breached through the rock and nailed Honoka square in the face. Once again, her body was sent flying away. Only this time, Eli pursued her.

As she was flying through the air, Honoka was able to gain consciousness. She saw Eli heading right towards her at a tremendous speed and knew that she didn't have a lot of time. She grabbed another syringe out of her pocket and jammed it into her neck. The instant healing quickly ran through her body as she was ready for another bout.

Unfortunately, she was in the air so she didn't really have a lot of control over her body. Eli already had her in range and charged up another punch. There was nothing else she could do but throw her arms in front of her and hope that it doesn't cause any massive damage.

"Aaahhh!" Eli charged a huge punched and hit Honoka right in the left forearm. That punch sent her flying back towards the ground. Her body hit the ground hard, but she knew that she had to find a place to recover. As long as her body was damaged, she couldn't fight Eli. As quickly as she could, she got back onto her feet and ran as fast as she could away from the crash site. Eli did her best to pursue, but somehow managed to lose track of her. On the other hand, Honoka continued to flee until she knew that Eli was nowhere near her.

Once it was clear, she collapsed onto her butt and leaned against a wall. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the remaining syringes. There were only two left.

"Great! Now I understand what she meant by cherish these." She popped the cap off of one and was about to jam it into her arm when she suddenly stopped herself.

 _Knock me to the ground before you lose the will to fight._

"If I use this, I'll only have one left. Who knows when we'll encounter each other again and who knows what she'll do when it happens." That's when she dropped her hand to the ground and sighed. "This complicates things." She put the cap back on the syringe and put it back in her pocket.

"I knew you couldn't hide forever." Eli appeared right above her as she quickly brought her foot down where Honoka was sitting. She rolled away once again and watched the ground crumble under her attack. "I'll get you this time." Eli stood there for a few more seconds before attacking once again.

Meanwhile, Umi was still watching the whole thing. In the beginning, her eyes were glued to Eli, but now, they were on Honoka. She was surprised to see that this girl was still in the fight. Umi knew that no one could rival her in physical strength, but these syringes she gave to Honoka were too much of a crutch. She was able to analyze all of this to the point where the fight was almost irrelevant. Things were already in motion that neither of them were actually aware.

"Just end this already."

…

Now, Honoka was running out of options. She was forced to use another syringe, leaving her with only one left. This time, her right forearm was crippled as the result of defending herself from Eli's punch.

However, she gathered some interesting things about this fight. Although her strength was incredible, she never attacked in rapid succession. Out of all of their encounters, Eli never attacked with two punches or two kicks or a combination of the two. Honoka was riding on this idea that it was the only thing left. Time was running out and Eli was right on her tail. She had to think of something or else all of this would have been for nothing.

As she continued to flee in the shadows, she found herself in a dead end which only made her worry even more. When she turned around, she saw Eli standing at the end of the alley, blocking any possible way of escape.

"I have to give you props. I know that you being here isn't a mistake, but your perseverance is something else." As she was talking, she readied her right arm for one last punch. "I've been counting and I won't let you use your last syringe. I'm ending it here."

At that moment, Honoka made a call. It was a complete gamble, but she didn't have any options left.

"I am too."

"Haha, good luck with that." Eli clenched her fist and made her way towards Honoka. At the same time, Honoka charged at Eli.

As the two of them got close to each other, Honoka pulled the syringe out of her pocket and jammed it into her right arm. One… She then spun her body to where her right arm met Eli's right arm. Two… When Eli's fist met Honoka's forearm, a strange thing happened. Honoka didn't feel any pain. Three… It was working. She then spun her body around and kicked Eli in the left knee. After that, she punched her at the bend of her right arm. Four… Honoka followed up with a palm uppercut to Eli's chin. All that was left was the finishing move. She gathered all of her strength and kicked Eli in the face, sending her body flying away in the same fashion as she did in the past.

Five.

From where she was, she stared at Eli's body that was lying on the ground. She quickly returned to her feet, but then the alarm sounded. The game was over. Honoka just didn't even realize because she had forgot about the rules.

As Eli walked towards her, Honoka was still in defense mode, but Eli made it obvious that she had no intention of fighting.

"Congratulations."

"Huh?"

"You beat me."

"But…"

"I said that all you had to do was knock me to the ground, and that's exactly what you did. Very observant of you."

"What do you mean?"

"You used my attack interval to finish me off."

"I did?"

"Haha, there you go again with your jokes. I still like you even though you beat me." At that moment, the artificial city disappeared leaving. That's when Umi jumped down from the observer box and reentered the conversation.

"Eli-chan, I'm very disappointed in you."

"I'm sorry. Hey, maybe you can avenge me, haha. Anyway, I want to wish you good luck on the rest of your journey. I will say this. Umi-chan is strong. She's the only person who makes me feel scared."

Honoka turned to face Umi and saw that she was gesturing her out of the shrine and to her own shrine. The doors closed behind them leaving Eli all alone.

"Wow. That was quite something. I didn't expect her to use the syringe before an encounter. She's pretty smart… But Umi-chan is smarter."

Boom! The doors of her shrine suddenly opened up again which caused her to turn her head.

"Hello, what… Wait a minute, what are you doing here? No, wait, please… Aahhhh!"

End of Chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8

A Game of Fate

Chapter 8

Goddess Umi

Umi lead Honoka to her shrine and immediately got down to business.

"I am Sonoda Umi and I am one of the descendants of the Goddess Muse."

"I am…"

"I know who you are. You are Kousaka Honoka and you've been searching for answers. It all started when your little town just below the mountain experienced its first taste of the mountain. When you ventured here to find out what was going on, you were introduced to a new world that you were easily able to adapt to. There's no need to explain yourself. I know everything."

At that moment, Honoka gulped incredibly loud. She was getting that overwhelming feeling again as if there was something different about this girl. Obviously, there was something different about this girl, but Honoka didn't know what it was. Ever since she had tea with the two of them, she knew that things were changing very rapidly without any time to take it all in.

"Alright. So then you know what this means then?"

"I do. You plan on challenging me. Allow me to explain the game." At that moment, the two of them were shot to opposite sides of the room and landed on a catwalk high above the floor. "This game is quite simple. You will be given an army of a hundred and your objective is to either defeat the enemy force or get behind their lines, whichever comes first. To your left, you will see a head piece. Put that on your head and you will be able to telepathically communicate with your army. Give them an order of any kind and they will follow it to the letter. What you think or feel… They think and feel. This army is you. Do you understand?"

"I think so. So if I win…"

"I'll stop you right there. I know I've never went against anyone else before, but I can almost guarantee that your journey will end here."

"Let's just think about the hypothetical then."

"Alright. What do you want?"

"If I win, will you tell me what you know since you seem to know a lot?"

"That is true, but I won't be able to do that. If you somehow manage to beat me, you will still have to go up against the top goddess."

"What is the big deal about this top goddess? You guys keep making a big deal about it, but I don't get it."

"It's nothing something to understand. Are you ready to do this?" Umi put her head piece on and looked over at Honoka.

At the same time, Honoka could feel the daggers that the girl had for eyes and immediately put on the head piece. She then nodded her head and took a deep breath.

"Let's begin."

…

The sound of her voice caused another change inside the shrine. Below her feet, her army of hundred men appeared as well as Umi's army. Also, a huge prairie field appeared as the landscape. It wasn't anything too special. There were a good amount of trees, but most of it was open field.

This automatically made Honoka feel nervous. Just looking at the terrain meant that this girl was trying to fight her head-on or have a fight to the wits. Looking at the numbers, they were even so going full force wasn't smart either.

"Show me the true you right now!" Umi threw her arm forward and caused 10 of her men to run towards Honoka's army. With little to no effort, her men slaughtered Honoka's men.

As she watched it happened, Honoka could barely even stand it. Her army literally put up no fight whatsoever. She tried getting another group of soldiers to take them on, but it was no use. They were slaughtered just like the group before. However, Honoka couldn't lay her arms down just yet. She ordered another group to branch off to the sides to avoid the main group guarding the middle of the map. At the same time, she sent the rest of her troops to take on the majority of Umi's forces.

"Stupid girl, I'm not that gullible." Umi redirected most of her attention to the troops coming from her right. Before she could change up her tactics, Umi's forces already engaged her main force. Meanwhile, the rest of the Honoka's forces engaged the middle group with hopeless effort.

"No, retreat! You can't…" Her words were wasted. Her eyes witnessed the murder of over half of her men.

"It's useless. Nothing can escape my knowledge."

"Shut up! You don't know anything." She commanded her men to create a hole within their defenses. They did their absolute best, but only managed to kill a small number of soldiers.

"I know everything."

"Why do you keep saying that?"

"You stand no chance so I will tell you the true me. Ever since you stepped foot on this mountain, I knew that we goddesses were in for a change. I could see you making progress because the goddesses all have flaws. Even I have my flaws, but I've matured enough to not let it affect me."

"That's impossible. You shouldn't be able to do something like that."

"I am a goddess. My power is knowledge. No one in this world can foresee the things that I can. This the reason why you will not be able to beat me. This will be the end of the line for you." Umi looked down and ordered her troops to push Honoka's forces into a corner. "With this move, you lose. Kill them all!"

Ding! The bell and the alarm sounded before anyone could make a move. Umi was confused as why the game was over. She hadn't even delivered the final attack. That's when she looked down to see one of Honoka's troops behind her own troops.

"What?! How is this…"

The shrine returned to its original state of normalcy while Umi was still in shock.

"What is going on? I saw through all of your moves. It's impossible for you to win."

Boom! The shrine doors opened loudly as the two of them turned their heads in wonder. They saw the caretaker walk into the shrine completely unannounced.

"What are you doing here? You have no right to be in here."

"Shut up! I have more than enough reason to be here. I can even explain to you why you lost."

"I didn't lose. This girl just got lucky."

"Oh please, she had you the moment you explained the rules."

"What are you talking about?"

"You brought this girl to her knees, mentally. That's when she decided to try something. She used that weak mind to trick you into thinking that her army was weak. While they preoccupied your army, she used a lone troop with the weakest morals to penetrate through your defenses and make it to the other side. The reason why you lost is because you let your own strength and knowledge get the best of you."

"That's impossible."

"Shut your mouth. Your time is over. I'll be taking your powers now."

"No, please. I didn't fail…"

At that moment, the caretaker gripped Umi by the neck and brought her to her knees. That's when her hair changed from its beautiful blue glow to a white shade. As this happened, Honoka was completely speechless. She watched as the caretaker suddenly rammed her hand into Umi's chest. The sight literally looked as though all of her life was being sucked out. It only lasted a few seconds before she pulled her arm out of her chest and interesting things started to happen.

The caretaker's hair started to glow bright red as her body was lifted into the air. It was something Honoka had never seen before and she was still shocked about what was happening before her very eyes. Before she could put all of her attention on the caretaker, her eyes reverted back to Umi. Her body fell loosely to the floor, but Honoka ran over to her just in time.

"W-What is going on?"

"It's all up to you now," Umi said slowly.

Honoka tried shaking her awake, but she wouldn't budge. She grew still as Honoka could no longer hear her breathing. That's when she looked up and set Umi's body down gently.

"Who are you?!"

The girls turned around and looked at Honoka with a blank look.

"This is all according to fate. All of this was meant to happen. I am Nishikino Maki and I'm the final descendant of the Goddess Muse."

"Why are you doing this?"

"You've been searching for answers all of this time. I will tell you. However, you won't be able to live after I tell you."

End of Chapter 8


	9. Chapter 9

A Game of Fate

Chapter 9

Goddess Maki

(The End)

 **Note:** Sorry not updating after all of this time. I got busy over the summer, but now, everything should be back to normal. Personally, for me, I had to do a lot of catching up on this story because it's been the one furthest back in my brain even though the story is supposed to be the most complex out of all the stories I'm writing. Anyway, enough of that… I hope you enjoy the update.

"What do you mean I won't survive?"

"This is where I shall start my story. The Goddess Muse believed that mankind could be given a second chance. That's why she split her powers up. However, history mistakenly believed that she divided her powers evenly. No. that's where I come in. I'm her deterrent; her very own judgment. I would watch over everything to see if mankind could be trusted with its own fate. You are the answer to the question of time. Humankind cannot be trusted with this power so now I'm taking it all back as well as recreating this corrupt world."

At that moment, the ground started to shake as well as beams of lights erupting from the ground. Honoka tried her best to maintain her stance, but the rupture of the ground caused her to fall.

"Watch as your decisions lead this world to a tragic end."

Boom! The temple suddenly exploded a huge wave of wind that sent Honoka down the mountain along with everything else. It was quite a tumble, but when she looked back up, she saw that it was not the same sight as before. the beams of light become one huge beam of light with Maki floating in the air right in front of it.

"What is going on?" Even though the girl explained more of what was happening, Honoka was still very confused. Nothing was making any sense to her.

"C-Come here."

At that moment, Honoka heard a soft voice coming from near her. She spun her head around until she saw Umi lying on the ground. She ran over to her and caressed her in her arms.

"It's okay. I'll find you some help."

"No… It's not worth it."

"You can't say that. I promise I will get you some help."

"No… Instead… Make me this promise… You must stop her," she whispered softly.

"But how am I supposed to do that? She has the intention of destroying the world."

"You can do it. You have our powers."

Honoka suddenly jumped at her words.

"Powers? What do you mean?"

"You beat all of us. Only the ones who defeated all the goddesses are granted the power to stop the last goddess." Umi suddenly coughed up blood. "She stole our powers, but the victorious one can stop her and start anew. It… has to be you."

"But how?"

"She's manifesting her power now. At the last moment of her manifestation, reach into her heart and pull it out. That will stop the destruction of your world. Good luck." At that moment, Umi's body suddenly went limp and her eyes closed, cutting off her view of Honoka.

"Wait… Don't go. I need you! I need your help! Please!"

There was no response. She was gone. Honoka couldn't help but stay there and offer her condolences to this fallen goddess. Once she was done, she ran into town and saw that everyone was going crazy. They all saw the madness that was happening atop Mt. Muse and knew that they had to get out now. However, Honoka searched through town looking for Tsubasa. After about a minute, she saw Tsubasa leaving the bar that she worked. That's when Honoka called out to her and grabbed her attention.

"Honoka, what's going on? Where have you been?"

"I was on Mt. Muse, battling the goddesses. Didn't I tell you this?"

"I doubt it. Even if you did, I wouldn't have thought that you were serious. Anyway… We need to get out of here. Don't you see what's happening here?"

"I know, but I have to stay."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because I'm the only one that can stop this from happening."

"What do you mean?"

"She's planning on destroying the world?"

"Eh?! Destroying the world? She?! What are you talking about?!"

"I'll tell you later, but you need to leave now."

"Are you going to be alright?"

"Don't worry about me. Just get out of here."

"Okay. Be careful."

"I will."

The two of them got one last look at each other and then went their separate ways. Honoka stayed and watched Tsubasa leave. Once she was clear of the town, she turned around and headed back to the mountain. When she looked up, she saw that the girl was now glowing. This was what the manifestation was that Umi was talking about. Sweat was starting to roll down the side of her face as she watched this spectacle.

"There is nothing you can do. Kneel before me and I will spare your life."

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to decline that offer. I have to stop you, for all of our sakes."

"Haha, good luck with that." Maki pointed her arm towards Honoka and suddenly created huge icicle around her. Once they formed, shot them at Honoka.

To her surprise, she was able to dodge them pretty easily. Maki was also surprised that she dodged them so she tried again. Honoka did a good job dodging again, but there was still one left that was coming right for her. She clenched her hand into a fist and smashed the ice to pieces.

"Impossible."

Honoka suddenly looked down at her hands and could feel a strange strength that she had never felt before.

"Is this what Umi was talking about?"

"Not this time." Maki created a hoard of arrows and aimed them right at Honoka. Without wasting any time, she shot them right at her.

When Honoka looked up, it almost seemed as if time slowed down. Her eyes moved in every direction, pointing out where each arrow was going to be in the future. She strategically positioned her body so that none of the arrows would hit her. once the arrows landed behind her, Maki was furious.

"This is impossible!"

"Strength like Eli. Wisdom like Umi. I do have the power." Honoka clenched her fist once more and looked right at Maki. "I'm coming for you now."

Honoka used her knowledge of what she's been through to coordinate her attack. She created a bunch of clones and summoned all sorts of felines. The combination of Nico and Rin would make it easier for her to finish the job. She immediately charged at Maki with everything she had. While she was on defense, Maki shot orbs of energy at Honoka, but she was able to dodge every shot. When they grew near, they started to split apart. Maki was running out of time. There was only one option left. She threw her arms to the side and created an atmosphere that froze everything in its place. This affected all of her clones and beasts until there was only her. That's when Maki lowered herself to the ground and slowly approached Honoka.

"That was an honorable attempt, but you can't beat me when I've fully manifested my power. Now, your time is up." Maki's hand glowed up and shoved it right into Honoka's chest. "Say goodbye to your world."

At that moment, Honoka's body disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

"What?"

"I figured it all out." Honoka jumped out from behind her and drove her hand through Maki's back, connecting her attack to Maki's heart."

"H-How?"

Honoka pulled her arm back and pulled out Maki's heart. Its form only lasted a few seconds until it dissipated into thin air.

"Beating me is impossible. How," she asked softly.

"I figured it out when I dodged your first attack. Your manifestation only revolved around Nozomi's power of magic. With every attack you did, they got stronger so I knew that that was what I needed to wait for. Once you were strong enough to stop me from attacking you, that's when I would make my move. I used Nico's power of cloning to trick you into thinking that that one was me. I used Hanayo's power of sight to find the hole in your defenses. The last thing I did was use all of their powers to pierce through your body. It's over. The world is safe."

"You're making a big mistake. Humans can't be trusted."

"Let's leave that up to fate."

At that moment, Maki's body vanished into thin air while another mistral body formed right in front of her. Honoka couldn't recognize who it was so she remained quiet until they said something first.

"What is your name, my child?"

"K-Kousaka Honoka," she said nervously.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Goddess Muse."

Honoka's jaw suddenly dropped to the floor.

"I know none of this seems possible so allow me to explain everything. What Maki said was true. However, her own interpretation is where things went wrong. I gave the power to take the other's power so that it didn't end up in the wrong hands. I just didn't realize that Maki wasn't wise enough to carry that heavy burden. Now that she has been defeated. All that's left is to give you these powers and have you watch over this world. I trust that you can continue the peace." Muse suddenly opened her hand and an orb of light appeared on it. "Now I can rest in peace knowing that you care for this world."

"Um, may I say something?"

"Of course."

"Is there any way to bring those girls back to life?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sure you can do anything, seeing as you're alive in front of me right now. I just feel that I'm not worthy of owning all of your powers. The girls who owned them recently did a great job. They didn't deserve that fate. Please, let them live again. I'm positive that that would be the better choice for this world."

"Haha, I like that answer. Very well, I shall grant you that wish, and with that, it is farewell." Suddenly, her entire glowed and them split off into 9 beams of light. Honoka watched as the beams of light returned the bodies of the 9 girls. She was unaware of it, but that light returned life to all of them. The only difference was that Maki no longer owned her previous powers.

After that encounter, Honoka headed back down the mountain with a smile on her face. Before she left though, she was stopped by a familiar voice. She stopped and turned around to see Kotori standing there with a warm smile.

"You're leaving so soon?"

"Yeah, I'm tired and there's no reason for me to be here anymore."

"Aw… Well, I just wanted to say thank you and that you're welcome here any time."

"Your welcome, and maybe I'll visit sometime."

"Sounds like a plan." Kotori suddenly walked over to her and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll see you soon?"

"Most definitely."

The End

 **Ending Note:** Sorry for the abrupt ending, but I never intended this story to be as long as my other stories. Each chapter emphasized one girl that eventually came down to the final encounter. I hope you all enjoyed the story and I hope you come back as there will be more stories in the future. Thank you so much for the support.


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